Archive for the ‘Ashes Tests’ Category

This recently unearthed British Council documentary provides a snapshot of English cricket over 60 years ago. Narrated by Sir Ralph Richardson and the great BBC commentator John Arlott, it shows beautiful footage of Test cricket and the theatre surrounding it, as well as the more humble cricket on the village green. There is some splendid slow-motion footage of the Lord’s Test of 1948, featuring such legends of the game as Sir Don Bradman, Sir Len Hutton, Denis Compton and Keith Miller.

Denis Compton hits the winning stroke as England beat Australia and win the Ashes at the Oval, London, 19th August 1953

Bradman in action

The Pathe documentary footage is also very strong on the crowd, the sense of occasion of a Lord’s Test that remains every bit as much of a national event today as it did in Sir Don’s last Ashes tour of England. It is a world away from Hot Spot, DRS and Snicko (and probably none the worse for that) but this video provides a glimpse of how cricket might have loked in 1948

IF selectors are looking for another excuse to drop Nathan Lyon he is giving them none and raising them one as the off-spinner says he wants to play all three forms of the game.Back playing for his native NSW in the Ryobi Cup, the 25-year-old produced a couple of delightful deliveries during a compelling spell against Queensland on Thursday. First he lured Usman Khawaja from his crease to have him stumped and the following ball ripped one back into Greg Moller, who held the bat above his head as the ball crashed into his stumps. Khawaja admitted later that the Bulls decided Lyon was bowling so well he was best seen off — even on the postage-stamp-size North Sydney Oval. Read the rest of this entry ?

This recently unearthed British Council documentary provides a snapshot of English cricket over 60 years ago. Narrated by Sir Ralph Richardson and the great BBC commentator John Arlott, it shows beautiful footage of Test cricket and the theatre surrounding it, as well as the more humble cricket on the village green. There is some splendid slow-motion footage of the Lord’s Test of 1948, featuring such legends of the game as Sir Don Bradman, Sir Len Hutton, Denis Compton and Keith Miller. The Pathe documentary footage is also very strong on the crowd, the sense of occasion of a Lord’s Test that remains every bit as much of a national event today as it did in Sir Don’s last Ashes tour of England.